The pilot of an aircraft which flipped on to its roof on landing had to cut himself free with a fire axe because he was trapped inside, it has emerged.

Crash investigators concluded that part of the Vans RV-9A’s landing gear suddenly collapsed when it touched down at Bristol & Gloucestershire Gliding Club at Nympsfield near Stroud.

The plane then flipped forwards, the propeller dug in to the ground and it went over on to its roof, meaning the 66-year-old pilot had to cut himself out on August 23 last year.

Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service and South Western Ambulance Service was called to assist but the pilot who had 727 hours of flying under his belt at the time, suffered only minor injuries. No-one else was in the 1 Lycoming O-320-B2C-engined plane, which was manufactured in 2003.

The official report in to the crash by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) looked in to the undulating nature of the runway but concluded that the pilot did not land on an ‘unlandable’ section – however he told the AAIB he felt a bump just before the nose wheel gear collapsed.

Emergency services attended the scene of the plane crash at Nympsfield

“There were no markings to indicate the extent of the ‘unlandable’ area but the pilot assessed he remained clear, to the north of it,” the report states.

“However, he was aware of going over a hump on the runway surface and he believes it is possible that he instinctively moved the stick forward at the top of the hump, rather than keeping it fully back, while moving on rough ground. He estimated his ground speed had reduced to approximately 20 kt by this stage.

The plane flipped over on landing at Nympsfield

“Without warning, the nose of the aircraft dropped, the propeller hit the ground and the aircraft flipped upside down. The pilot was uninjured and turned off the electric master switch before reaching for the fire axe. The canopy had been damaged and the pilot used the axe to cut a hole, through which he was able to crawl out of the aircraft.”

The gliding club confirmed the aircraft did not encroach the ‘unlandable’ area and subsequently updated its briefing information for visiting pilots.

The aircraft was recovered after the crash at Nympsfield

There have been 13 previous instances of nose landing gear failure on the same or similar models, the report said, and seven happened landing on soft or undulating grass.